WILLEY, Edward Albert
| Service Number: | 5217 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 24 January 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 51st Infantry Battalion (WW1) |
| Born: | Beverley, Western Australia, 22 May 1894 |
| Home Town: | Cannington, Canning, Western Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Mill Hand |
| Died: | Perth, Western Australia, 2 December 1956, aged 62 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Karrakatta Cemetery & Crematorium, Western Australia |
| Memorials: | Beverley District Honour Roll WW1, Beverley War Memorial, Kalamunda District Roll of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 24 Jan 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 5217, 16th Infantry Battalion (WW1) | |
|---|---|---|
| 31 Mar 1916: | Involvement Private, 5217, 16th Infantry Battalion (WW1), --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '12' embarkation_place: Fremantle embarkation_ship: HMAT Shropshire embarkation_ship_number: A9 public_note: '' | |
| 31 Mar 1916: | Embarked Private, 5217, 16th Infantry Battalion (WW1), HMAT Shropshire, Fremantle | |
| 18 May 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 4th Divisional Cycle Corps | |
| 15 Oct 1916: | Wounded AIF WW1, Private, 5217, 51st Infantry Battalion (WW1), France - Shell Gas Poisoning | |
| 9 Dec 1918: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 5217, 51st Infantry Battalion (WW1), per Argyllshire | |
| 7 Mar 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, Private, 5217, 51st Infantry Battalion (WW1) |
Help us honour Edward Albert Willey's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Chris Buckley
Edward was the youngest of twelve children of George Thomas Willey (b1849 in Canooldeyup, WA) and Mary Ann Watkins (b1854 in York, WA). George (a Farmer) and Mary married in 1871 in Gilgering, WA. They settled in Beverley, WA and raised their family. The children were orphaned - Mary died in 1902 and George in 1906.
Edward was eight years of age when his mother died and eleven years of age when his father died - he was raised by older siblings. Edward was working as a Mill Hand in Cannington, WA when he enlisted in the AIF in 1916 - he listed his Next of Kin as his older sister Ada Margaret Slape (nee Willey). Edward served as a Private (Service no:5217) with 16th Infantry Battalion, 4th Cyclists Corps, 31st Infantry Battalion and 51st Infantry Battalion. He was WiA in France in 1917 - Shell Gas poisoning and was in England when he married Dorothy Laura Alderton (b1901 in India) in 1918 in Dartford, Kent - Dorothy was a Machinist in the Munitions Works. Edward was Discharged in March 1919.
Edward and Dorothy settled in Perth WA, where Edward was a Labourer and Packer. He served in the ACMF (Private; Service No:W243379) and was attached to Provost Coy when he was Discharged in 1943. Edward died in 1956 and Dorothy in 1965.
Click images to start slideshow.